Third round of Common Aviation Area Agreement to be held soon

Azerbaijan and the European Union (EU) agreed for the larger part on the draft Common Aviation Area Agreement.

Azerbaijani Ambassador to Belgium and Luxembourg Fuad Isgandarov made the remarks in an interview with Trend.

He noted that this is a rather complicated technical project, but at the same time it has its political and economic component. “I think the dynamics of the talks on this document provide an opportunity to make optimistic conclusions about its prospects,” Isgandarov added.

Brussels hosted the second round of negotiations on signing of an EU-Azerbaijan Common Aviation Area Agreement on July 4-5.

A delegation led by Director of the country’s State Civil Aviation Administration Arif Mammadov represented Azerbaijan in the negotiations.

Moreover, the delegation included employees of the State Civil Aviation Administration and the Embassy of Azerbaijan in Belgium, as well as representatives of the Azerbaijani Foreign Ministry and Justice Ministry.

The remarks and proposals of the Azerbaijani side were discussed, and a number of issues were clarified. The sides signed a protocol following the meeting.

The Ambassador stressed that the third round of the negotiations on the draft Common Aviation Area Agreement is planned to be held in Baku in October.

It is expected that the final version of the agreement will be prepared at the meeting in Baku.

Further, the Ambassador touched upon the Belgian-Azerbaijani relations.

He went on to say that today, the political dialogue between Azerbaijan and Belgium is at a high level, which was evidenced by the meeting of King Philippe of Belgium with President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev in Brussels during a visit at the invitation of the European Council’s President Donald Tusk.

Isgandarov emphasized that the two countries have great potential for the development of economic cooperation.

The diplomat added that Azerbaijan expects greater involvement of European companies in the implementation of transport corridor projects in the country, further adding that along with the energy cooperation, Azerbaijan is also interested in attracting Belgian investments in other spheres of the economy.

The trade turnover between Azerbaijan and Belgium amounted to $31.435 million in January-June 2017, increasing by $873,180 or 2.9 percent, as compared to the same period of 2016, according to Azerbaijan’s State Statistics Committee.

Currently, the bilateral relations between the EU and Azerbaijan are regulated on the basis of an agreement on partnership and cooperation that was signed in 1996 and entered into force in 1999.

The new agreement should replace the 1996 partnership and cooperation agreement and should better take account of the shared objectives and challenges the EU and Azerbaijan face today.

The EU is Azerbaijan’s major trade partner. This 28-memberstates union with a total population of more than 500 million people is Azerbaijan's biggest economic partner accounting for the country’s 38 percent of foreign trade share.